Ringmærkningen var lidt sløv i dag med i alt 7 mærkede fugle, vi håber imorgen bliver bedre;)

På obsen havde Joseph og jeg fået besøg af David, og senere kom Lars også ud til os.

Dmi mente at det skulle blæse fra Ø-SV, så forventningerne var egentlig deroppe ad, men vores "Paraply mållinger" viste altså ret så meget NV.

Vi fik også glæde af lidt regn, som gjorde at man nærmest ikke kunne se noget, det varede heldigvis ikke så længe.

På trods af NV vind blev det en okay morgen, ikke god, men heller ikke dårlig.

Det var specielt ænderne som holdte liv i os, 1525 Sortænder [Common scooter], 289 Krikænder [Teal], og lidt Pibe- og Spidsand, [Widgeon, Pintail] + 6 Skeænder [Shovelers]

Lidt vadere kom der da også, men det var ikke det helt vilde, 120 Almindelige Ryler [Dunlin] som det vildeste.

Derudover 2 Almindelige Kjover [Arctic Skua], 1 gammel og 1 1k.

Se alle observationer fra I dag her:

Efter obsen blev der lavet pandekager, til lyden af tømrere på loftet som er igang med at udskifte tagvinduer.

Og Morten stod for aftensmaden, som i dag stod på frikadeller.

Nye vinduer, næsten færdige.

Folk på stationen: Louis Poulsen, Joseph Stephan, Morten Jenrich Hansen, David Manstrup og Lars Tom-Petersen

The day started with Morten opening the mist nets, while Louis, Lars, and I headed to the sea to do the daily morning observation. The weather was pleasant, with temperatures around 15 degrees Celsius, and a southwestern wind of up to 6m/s.

The migration was rather slow today, with a total of six Oystercatchers (Strandskade), 100 Red Knots (Islandsk Ryle), 56 Dunlins (Almindelig Ryle), two Red Shanks (Rödben), one Wood Sandpiper (Tinksmed), two Grey Herons (Fiskehejre), and 609 Common Scoters (Sortand). Additionally, we spotted four Arctic Skuas (Almindelig Kjove) and a Great Egret (Sölvhejre) foraging, which was arguably the highlight of the day. You can see a comprehensive list of all observations here.

Observation spot from today

Digiscope of the Great Egret standing on the beach

We returned to the station, entered the data into DOFbasen, looked at the spectrogram from the recorded call of the Wood Sandpiper (Tinksmed), and had the leftover burritos from yesterday’s dinner for an early lunch.

Morten didn't have the luck he was hoping for today, with only eight new ringed birds, but he was still very pleased about the European Pied Flycatchers, as they are quite rare to catch in Aarhus, where he lives and rings usually. In total, 14 birds were caught, including one Song Thrush (Sangdrossel), two Garden Warblers (Havesanger), two Eurasian Blackcaps (Munk), one Goldcrest (Fuglekonge), four European Pied Flycatchers (Broget Fluesnapper), one Great Tit (Musvit), and three Eurasian Bullfinches (Dompap).

Male Bullfinch 1st calendar year

To cap off this beautiful day at the Fuglestation, Louis cooked a delicious pasta Carbonara for dinner. While we were enjoying the meal, David Manstrup arrived, which further brightened the mood. We had honeydew melon for dessert and shared with David the interesting and amusing things that happened while he was absent. Afterward, we went to our well-deserved beds, looking forward to tomorrow, when we hope to have another great day in Blaavand.

People at the station: Louis Poulsen, Morten Jenrich Hansen, Lars Tom-Petersen, David Manstrup

Bent styrede igen i dag ringmærkningen. Der var ikke mængder af fugle i nettene, 17 fugle i alt, men det blev alligevel til 2 sjove arter. En Stor Flagspætte [Great spotted woodpecker], og en Mudderklire [Common sandpiper]!!

På obsen var vi en hel del personer fra morgenstunden, Jeg, Joseph + hans mor og onkel, en tysker, og kort tid efter sluttede Lars sig til også.

På trods af vind fra SV skete der ikke særlig meget på træk fronten. Der var dog i løbet af hele obsen indimellem Almindelige Kjover [Arctic Skua] som kom rigtigt fint tæt på ind over stranden, og som indimellem satte sig på stranden. Det var til stor glæde for især Joseph’s familie og Joseph selv som gerne ville vise dem en kjove mens de var her ude;)

Ved eftermiddagstid ankom Morten, som skal ringmærke de næste to ugers tid, og Joseph og jeg lavede burritos med flotte former til aftensmad som kunne nydes ude i gården;)

Se alle observationer fra i dag her:

Folk på stationen: Louis Poulsen, Bent Jakobsen, Joseph Stephan, Morten Jenrich Hansen, Lars Tom-Petersen

Der var ikke de store forventninger til dagen med NNV 7 m/s og skyet vejr.
Det holdt på observationerne, hvor der var meget stille, så Louis og Joseph kedede sig gevaldigt uden mange trækkende fugle. Dog satte 6 Almindelige Kjover lidt kulør på tilværelsen.
Også til ringmærkningen var der med den vind ikke de store forhåbninger, men man kan jo blive positivt overrasket. Pludselig på 1. runde sad der 6 Broget Fluesnapper og flere Havesangere i stationshaven, og i 2. runde var det fyrhaven, som gav fugle. De to pludselige influks skyldes efter al sandsynlighed nogle regnbyger som kom ind og fuglene er søgt ned.
Dagens total blev 38 fugle med 9 Broget Fluesnapper og 9 Havesanger som talrigest. Det bliver nok sidste dag med pænt med fluesnappere, som med 51 har haft et udmærket efterår.
Jeg var i dag alene med ringmærkningen da Strummer kl. 6 blev hentet af Henrik, som kørte ham til lufthavnsbussen i Esbjerg. Turen går nu tilbage over dammen til US efter et par måneder på Blåvand Fuglestation. Vi fik alle sagt farvel og han tager tilbage med mange gode oplevelser i bagagen og snakker allerede nu om at komme tilbage.
Over frokost kom Lars Tom med wienerbrød, og han bliver til torsdag. Joseph blev hentet af sine forældre, som er i Danmark i øjeblikket.

Folk på stationen:
Louis, Joseph, Lars Tom og Bent.

The day began with Strummer, Louis, and me setting up the mist nets. After that, Louis and I headed to the beach for our usual morning observation. While we walked towards the "Pælerækken," a gentle southwest breeze (4m/s) accompanied us, along with a breathtaking sunrise that painted the sky in captivating shades of red. During our observation, we saw a total of 66 Oystercatchers (Strandskade), 153 Red Knots (Islandsk Ryle), 49 Redshanks (Rödben), 25 Turnstones (Stenvender), two Ruffs (Brushane), five Arctic Skuas (Almindelig Kjove), one Kestrel (Tarnfalk), and one Osprey (Fiskeörn), all migrating southwards. The most exciting part was witnessing a Skua mobbing an Osprey which was trying to migrate – an incredible sight. You can find a comprehensive list of all observations here.

A Skua mobbing an Osprey - Photo: Louis Poulsen 

Bent and Strummer caught 25 birds today, which included two Common Whitethroats (Tornsanger), three Garden Warblers (Havesanger), one Chiffchaff (Gransanger), one Willow Warbler (Lövsanger), nine Tree Sparrows (Skovspurv), two Common Chaffinches (Bogfinke), and four Bullfinches (Dompap). Due to a heavy rain shower, we had to close the nets at 10:30 AM.

Just as we finished closing the nets, Louis, who was sitting north of the lighthouse in hopes of spotting a Dotterel, called to inform us that a Honey Buzzard was flying over the dunes. We rushed to Louis's location and were fortunate enough to see this stunning raptor in action – a lifer for both Strummer and me.

Returning to the station, we reviewed the photos from today's observation, entered the collected data, and took a well-deserved nap. Afterwards, I hopped on the bike to grab some pizzas for dinner. As the day wound down, we enjoyed the food and cold drinks, reflecting on the awe-inspiring encounters with nature and wildlife that Blaavand generously provides. We are so thankful for the chance to work and reside at the Fuglestation, and are curious to see what the day will bring tomorrow.

People at the station: Louis Poulsen, Strummer Edwards, Joseph Stephan

While today definitely didn't bring anything comparable to yesterday's Barred Warbler (Høgesanger), it was still a nice laid back day of ringing. 

Bent and I opened nets in time for the standard 6:15 net run (during my last few days its been crazy realizing how much later we can open nets now compared to opening at 4:45 earlier in the season) and enjoyed some nice breakfast before it was time to check nets. During one of our first runs, we caught a pair of Blackcap (Munk) which made for a nice comparison between both sexes.  

Although it isn't a suprising catch, seeing these really obvious moult limits in 1K male Redstarts (Rødstjert) are always super satisfying. 

The highlight of the morning was a recap Goldcrest (Fuglekonge) which was my second time having one in hand.  It's really crazy how tiny they are, it was only a little larger than the hummingbirds we catch in the states! 

The rest of my day was primarily devoted to entering data and packing.  Louis and Joseph returned rather early, the obs were very slow today.  They did have a Great Spotted Woodpecker (Stor Flagspætte) which was a nice suprise.  

Hopefully tomorrow will be a nice final send off for me, but it was nice having a slow day after such an insane one yesterday.  

People at the station: Bent Jakobsen, Strummer Edwards, Joseph Stephan, and Louis K. Poulsen

Even though we weren't catching too many birds, we were able to get a bird which we have been praying for the entire season! 

We unfortunately started the day off an hour late due to rain in the morning but we were still able to meet standard time.  The morning had us catching pretty limited numbers, the vast majority of which were Garden Warblers (Havesanger).  Eventually Svent dropped by for a quick visit and we were able to enjoy some delicious pastries he brought for us.  After a few 0 net runs, we went up to the lighthouse expecting nothing.  I extracted a large sylvid out of the net and quickly realized that it wasn't a Garden Warbler (Havesanger).  The pinkish bill, undertail coverts, and overall plumage made it very clear that this was a Barred Warbler (Høgesanger)! We had been hoping for one of these the entire season so everyone was overjoyed. 

Quick picture we took of the Barred right out of the net

We brought it down to the station to process (and let everyone take a quick look at it) and Bent was kind enough to let me ring it.  The undertail coverts, wing (and lack of a moult limit in the flight feathers), and iris all made it rather obvious that this was a 1k bird.  Once we were done ringing, we took it outside to get some documentation photos before releasing it.

 A really nice headshot showing off the bill and iris (Photo credit Louis K. Poulsen)

Unfortunately, Louis and Joseph had much less luck on the observations, but they were able to see the Barred and spend some time watching the jets.  

The next few days have promising conditions so hopefully we'll have some more highlights before I head home!

People at the station Louis K. Poulsen, Joseph Stephan, Strummer Edwards

We wrapped up the day by doing some data entry and cleaning bird bags for ringing tomorrow.  

I dag var der ringmærkning igen. Da Merit ikke længere er her, hjalp jeg og Joseph Strummer med at sætte net op, og Bent kom og var med til ringmærkningen resten af dagen.

Det blev en helt godkendt dag med 90 fangede fugle.

Højdepunktet/erne var 1 flot ung han Lille Korsnæb [Common Crossbill], og senere 3 Lille Korsnæb [Common Crossbill], som blev fanget sammen.

Foto: Strummer Edwards, Lille Korsnæb [Common Crossbill]

På obsen var der allerede fra ankomst kæmpe højt humør, da der fløj 4 Almindelige Kjover [Arctic Skua] frem og tilbage tæt på kysten, og indimellem helt ind over land!

Foto: Louis Poulsen, Almindelig Kjove [Arctic Skua]

Udover kjoverne skete der ikke det store, meget få vadefugle indtil ved 8 tiden hvor der begyndte at komme lidt. Ca. 100 Islandske Ryler [Knots], og tæt på 300 Strandskader [Oystercatcher]

Af andre bemærkelsesværdige fugle kan, Dværgmåge 1, 1K og 1, 1K Brushane nævnes.

Eftermiddagen brugte jeg blandt andet på at fikse stativer og gennem rense hovedet. De bliver nemlig godt slidt her ude af sand og salt.

Der fikses;)

Se alle observationer fra i dag her:

Folk på stationen: Louis Poulsen, Strummer Edwards, Bent Jakobsen og Joseph Stephan

Although we were unfortunately not able to do any ringing today, the morning observations had some nice finds! The highlights were definitely the multiple skuas flying incredibly close to shore (in this case all being Arctic Skua (Almindelig Kjove)) as they have in the past few days. We also had decent numbers of the expected shorebirds, including some Red Knots (Islandsk Ryle) and Oystercatchers (Strandskade). 

Somone also reported an Atlantic Puffin (Lunde), although we had no luck finding it.  Hopefully we'll have some luck with them later in the season, we were all really wanted to find that individual.  We may not have had anything as nice as that, we did have a few Razorbills (Alk) which was nice. 

I checked the bog hoping for some nice birds and even though there wasn't anything crazy, it was nice seeing decent numbers of migrants.  

The next few days look like they will have promising conditions for ringing so hopefully we'll have some great birds to share for the blog! 

To wrap up a wonderful day at the bird observatory, Louis cooked some incredible lasagna for us!

As usual Merit and Strummer opened the mist nets before the sunrise, while Louis and I headed to the beach to do the daily morning observation. 

The migration was quite slow today with only 119 Oystercatchers (Strandskade), 209 Common Scoters (Sortand), 21 Red Knots (Islandsk Ryle), four Sanderlings (Sandlöber), five Golden Plovers (Hjejle) and three Arctic Skuas (Almindelig Kjove), which definitely saved the day. We were very happy that the Skuas came so close to the beach, gracing us with close up views of their incredible behavior.

Arctic Skua - Foto: Louis Poulsen

Merit and Strummer did not have the luck they wished for today and caught only 16 birds including 5 Bullfinches (Dompap), 2 Chaffinches (Gransanger), 2 Common Whitethroats (Tornsager) and a Lesser Redpoll (Lille Grösisken). But the small number of birds left a lot of extra time to control the data so Merit and Strummer were able to complete this task for this autumn season so far, which made both of them very happy.

Male Chaffinch - Foto: Merit Lenk

To cap of this beautiful day at the Fuglstation Louis made a delicious Pasta Carbonara for dinner and all of us relished every bite.

People at the station: Louis Poulsen, Merit Lenk, Strummer Edwards and Joseph Stephan.